A Tour of the Food Network Prop House

If there's one thing I learned doing set design and prop styling for the Food Network years ago, it's that people eat with their eyes. Say, for example, Mario Batali was going to be doing a segment on pork chops. It was my job not only to find a beautiful antique cutting board but the butcher paper to go along with it. After all, nobody wants to see all that meat directly on the cutting board, right? Or maybe it was Gale Gand making Baked Alaska on her show Sweet Dreams. In my mind, I'd have to know what it's going on, how it's being served, and what she'd need to eat it. Food, especially in the magazine and television worlds, requires props. It's all the servingware, utensils, linens, even furniture that work together to give a cooking show real authenticity—and beauty. Enter the Food Network Prop House, a vast treasure trove filled with every conceivable compote, cake stand, cutting board and carving set (among other things) you can possibly imagine!

Of course, a place like this could—could—be a terrific mess, but it's not. It's a beautiful, organized and efficient machine, thanks to two old friends and colleagues of mine: Wendy Waxman and Jamie Tulchin. Wendy was actually the one who hired me at Food Network (after half an hour, if can you believe it); our shared love for the flea market, together with a passion for beautiful things, created an instant bond. To this day, she's the only other person I've ever met who could be just as excited as I am to pick out a fork! But, as Jaithan and I found out over brunch before the tour, it's Jamie, Wendy's new partner in crime, who's the real brains behind the prop house—or at least its staggering order. She's the one who oversaw it in the move from Food Network's old offices on 52nd Street, where I worked, to their new digs in the Chelsea Market downtown. Here I am in the prop house with Jaithan, Jamie on the left, and Wendy in front.   

As you can see, the place is filled with shelves upon shelves of beautiful things. There's more antique ironstone than even I'd know what to do with...

...glasses and barware for every cocktail imaginable...

...cake pedestals in Lucite, glass, china and metal...

...antique chocolate, ice cream and baking molds in every size and shape...

...cutting boards made from bamboo, oak, walnut and maple...

...mid-century modern plasticware and melamine in every color...

...and dish towels so organized, it's incredible!   

Speaking of, take a look at this shelf of salt and pepper shakers and grinders. How incredible is that?

For the full, beautiful photo album (with captions!) of our behind the scenes tour of the Food Network prop house, click here. Then come back and share what items you'd most want in your kitchen! You know...while you're making, say, pumpkin ravioli with a sage butter sauce, talking out loud, pretending you're on a show...pinch of nutmeg, salt to taste...

Wait...maybe that's just me. Enjoy the pictures, everyone!   

Comments

[Curtains In My Tree]

OMG
I couldn't stand it!!!!! I seen so many things I would want to take home , like all the molds and half the white ironstone and half the melmac dishes, all the cake plates

OMg I just couldn't stand seeing all those treasures in one place ans being able to claim them

[J'adore Decor team Sweden]

We would have loved to grab one of those cake pedestals on one of those pics!!!

[stephanie frazier grimm @ CoutureParties]

I think I would like to live in there! Please & Thank you!

[thomas]

What a neat treak. I'd love to grab some of those white dishes.

[April~Living The Sweet Life]

What a fantastic place to explore. I love setting out to find some wonderful treasure a our local thrift shops or antique shops to add to my collection.

[Live In Full Color]

What's better than a prop house! Wish I could have helped then shop for it all! Thanks- what a great photo diary of what sounds like a fun day!

[Katie Abel]

I DIE!

[Newburgh Restoration]

Wow that was a pretty cool tour behind the scenes!

[Barbara Nieder]

I just looked at your pictures for the unpteenth time and got to thinking, surely there are some more great pictures of that place that you didn't have room to display. How about a Part II of the Prop Shop?

Another idea I have is to let us tell the best tips we got from you this summer. Right now mine is the use of platters for plates. They are so, so wonderful at my buffets.

[Adrienne]

Seriously? OMG! This was fabulous! Thanks for the tour! I love it all, but that sauce tureen caught my eye right away!

Adrienne

[Marysol]

What a treat!

I tend to be a pack-rat in regards to props. And have a collection of white ironstone, cake stands, chocolate molds, etc.

But, NOTHING, that would ever come close to the massive collection of props at the Food Network's Fun House.

I'm not very happy right now.

[Layla]

Totally diggin those little salt and pepper shakers with the orange houndstooth pattern on them, and I could just stare at the ironstone aisle for days......

Thanks for the tour!
Layla

[Shannon Y]

I am DYING over those cake plates! I have an obsession with cake plates and I can't stop buying them - I would go bananas there. Thanks posting it on The Kitchen, I never would have found your blog otherwise.

[Susie Harris]

I could play in there for days on end!

[Matters of Style]

Holy moly, there is so much fabulous stuff it's hard to pick a favorite! I have always wondered where the serving pieces and decor comes from on Food Network, and I will definitely be keeping my eye on the details next time I tune in. Looking forward to meeting you next week in DC!

[Suzy]

Wow - now there's a dream job!

[Ryan Kay]

Thats what Heavens kitchen looks like :)

[Kathi @ allthingswhite]

This is so lovely and I simply want it all !!! But if forced to choose the white ironstone will win!

[Karena]

I would be in heaven. Such inspiration. Did you want to take it all in your shopping basket(s)!

[Emily]

Oh my goodness, thank you for sharing this with us!! I would take the brown transferware platter piece in a heartbeat!

[Carol Wood]

What a fascinating post! Thank you so much.
Carol Wood
french-treasures.com

[Evelyn Weiss]

I'll take the platter under that tureen! What a fun tour!

xoxo
Evy

[Heather @ what's blooming this week]

The brown transferware platter.....I'm thinking about Canadian Thanksgiving which is only 4 weeks away. Wouldn't the turkey look terrific on it.

[HopelessChest]

I want 5 minutes in there, Supermarket-Sweep style. Just me, a grocery cart versus a stopwatch!

[Visual Vamp]

Swooning.
Hope you had a wonderful summer jetting around in private planes. Have it make a pit stop so you can come and see us in New Orleans.
xo xo

[Kelly]

Cathrineholm! Cathrineholm! Cathrineholm!
LOVE. now I know where it's all been hiding. Thanks for letting us in on the secret, Eddie. Take care!

[Jennifer]

I was going to say that I doubt there was too much ironstone for you ... but then I scrolled down - wow!

man, I love a good prop room!

[Jamie Tulchin]

OMG! I never read the fine print on the Tavern Toppers box! LMFAO! Oh and also, if I could take anything home it would have to be that gorgeous and very rare "Ellen Diamond Collection"!

[pve]

It is a toss up, between the sextette of tavern toppers or that elegant tureen. I know my meal would be more fun with both!
If I were there, I would have just been in heaven!!!

[Joyce]

Anything vintage surrounding me while I bake or cook makes me happy. Especially a piece that my mom or grandma used.

How fun to be able to work with Gale Gand. I have met her a couple of times. She is one of the nicest people!! There has been a few ocassions where I got stuck on one of her recipes or asked another question and she always found time out of her busy schedule to respond. Thanks for sharing!
Enjoy... xoxo

[LindsB]

Wow, Its kinda like Marthas prop closet- I would die to have a place like this at my fingertips. All those beautiful things, ahh swoon!

[Jamie Tulchin]

Wow! Eddie and Jaithan, what a fantastic story and array of pictures you put together of our beautiful prop house. It's a real treat seeing it through your eyes. Thank you so much for the fabulous post. xoxo. J.

[Sarah]

This is spectacular! I love these behind the scenes sneak peeks. Thanks!

[Barbara Nieder]

Thanks guys. I just drool over these pictures. One thing I do want to share: I use old toast racks to display plates of my flow-blue china. (When a collection gets too big, a person gets more creative.)

[suzanne hill]

as a still life painter and a libra to boot (making it hard to ever choose of course) I think I would go bonkers in that prop room! Thanks for sharing.

Suzanne on St. Simons

[Kimberly]

I just wanna hang with you for ONE WEEKEND. Maybe this should be on my Bucket List. But I wanted to share that I was inspired by you and the Etsy Handmade/Vintage shops. Opened one up and BAM, I sold my first item within 7 minutes of posting. Thank you for day to day inspiration, fabulous reads, and sharing your creative life with all of us. You are a special man and your creative spirit touches me often.

[Tracy Holland]

I would love to use the hand painted pink/green/purple Paris porcelain set paired with the green and gold banded set of dishes and platters for a Spring Bridal or Baby shower. Add those antique chocolate molds and the table is set for Easter Brunch.

[Loren]

I spied with my little eye some fabulous milk glass plates. I am giving a welcome home party for a friend in a few days and would love to use those for the buffet I am planning. I am using person hostess platters for the meet and greet before the luncheon. I love them, mid century, with a oblong milk glass mini platter and a spot for the matching punch cup! To cute.

I would just die to get into that room, I would also have a break down deciding what I exactly need! Its a museum of sorts! What a treasure!

[Emily @ Peach & Pearl]

The cake stands! Ohhhhh the cake stands.

[Tracy]

Eddie...first of all, you know how jealous I am of your life...Oh to be travel-size and come in your carry-on, i would be oh-so well behaved!

I am drooling over each and every picture. I just love the cake-plate room. D.I.E. (a la Rachel Zoe...)

"...And just a tip to all you viewers out there, you don't need a cake for a cake plate. Just take your beautifully made pumpkin Ravioli and present it on a squatty pedestal plate such as this. Doesn't the fried sage just look beautiful that Eddie has made? That crunch just can't be beat. I'm Tracy and you all know Eddie - and we'll see you next time!"

[The Blushing Hostess]

That is like a dream pantry, Eddie, no?

[Meghan]

Wow, heaven! I have a thing for cake pedestals, but that china is amazing!

[barbara heady]

OMG,even you have to be impressed,what an amazing assortment of goodies!

[Anne]

Fabulous pics!!! Reminds me (almost) of the amount of kitchen stuff I have!

p.s. it's 'Mise en place' (notation on 1st picture in the photo album)

[Vanessa Johanning]

wow, wow, wow ... hmmm WOW!

Me too! I cant breathe!
Its just all too Cool for words!!!

Its like The Goodwill in Heaven!
Thanks for sharing!
Vanessa

http://RhinestoneContessa.com

[Shawn]

Thanks Eddie for that incredible tour of eye candy. A ham stand! I have never even heard of one, much less seen one! I'd choose the yellow ware batter bowl - knockout color.

[Michelle Amurao]

This is what I imagine heaven to look like.

[debra phillips]

what fun!

really covet the black and white tureen. but love the idea of having the space and shelves and then the thought of filling them, what joy!

ps; love the revised look of your website guys. in particular the portfolio, up front and center, the bedroom with the giant egg print, to die for

[Jennifer @ Fiddle Dee Dee]

I could just get lost in there! What a fabulous job to have! I absolutely fell in love with the black and cream soup tureen...and the silverware?!?! Love it!

Thanks for the photo tour,
Jennifer

[Wendy]

Oh my - this is (almost) better than the shoe department at Saks - and they have their own zip code!

My one thing - If I could extend summer for just one more day - I want those lobster plates - complete with the last of the summer season lobster roll (lobster and just enough homemade mayo to hold it together - no filler please - a touch of fresh parsley from the garden) - on toasted buttered buns (the new england style hotdog bun with the side sliced off )- and a lovely mixed green salad so I don't feel too decadent with all that BUTTER -

Pass the chardonay - momma needs a cocktail

[sheista]

Now I know where Sandra Lee gets all her props ;)
Thanks so much for sharing.
I'm hosting a luncheon tomorrow and would have loved to wade through those table cloths before setting my table.

[Sebastian]

While I do not have > that much stuff myself, I have way more than I can use now or ever. (I inherited the last hundred years of collectors' things--on top of my own!) But am I going to let that stop me? No! I would not mind having the red-handled and the green-handled stainless flatware. (I already have the natural/bone colored ones.) I can see using those for several holidays.

Looking at the pictures, I noticed they had tablecloths hung over clothes hangers. I hang mine on pant/skirt hangers--the metal kind with the little clips-- and keep them in a spare clothes closet. They then can go straight on the table with no ironing out of creases.

[teaorwine]

Amazing accumulation of goods! Who does the cleaning, with a feather duster, no doubt?? ;)

[Lindsey]

Omgosh, what a great prop house! I think if I visited I may hyperventilate! Kitchen props, accessories and pretties are an addiction of mine! Don't even get me started about how much fun it would be to shop for all the lovely things stored there!

Thanks for sharing,

{ Lindsey }
http://greatfullday.blogspot.com

[Sally Williams]

Absolutely GLORIOUS!!!!!

Eddie, why don't you talk them into tours done by you? I'd go in a heartbeat....

Sally Williams

[peggy taylor]

I would take that wonderful lobster plate!!
And... be happy as a clam!!!!!

[Anne]

"Tavern Toppers" and flower-patterned bowls

[Clara]

What, you are giving something from here away? Let me go back and choose very carefully. I Wish.
Enjoy so much your sharing.

[Laura Casey]

wow that is amazing! Thanks for the tour!

[Danielle]

Very Stunning! My head would be spinning after a tour of that store house!

:)

[Wren]

Ha,ha,ha!! You have the best sense of humor!! You are so funn.....oh. You're serious? You expect us to look at those pictures and pick one thing? Seriously? Oh. I'll be right back..............

Um, maybe the old red-handled utensils? I am looking for one of the red-handled s-shaped potato mashers.

Or, the black bowl with the lemon yellow glaze inside. Or the green cabbage flower pot, or, well, see what I mean?

Beautiful things, and I think you for sharing them.

[Sara Jane]

you'd have to get me a paper bag to breathe in if i took that tour. it's all too much! i couldn't handle all the fabulousness!